One day a father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the firm purpose of showing his son how much poverty exists in the world. They spent several days and nights on the farm of a very poor family.

Upon their return from their trip, the father asked his son, “How was the trip?” The son’s answer? “It was great, Dad!”… “Did you see how poor people can be?” the father asked. “Oh yeah,” said the son.

“So, what did you learn from the trip?” asked the father. The son continued, “I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden, and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden, and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard, and they have the whole horizon.”

His son added, “We have a small piece of land to live on, and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who work for us, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us, and they have friends to protect them.”

With this the boy’s father was speechless. Then his son finally said, “Thanks Dad, for showing me how poor we are.”

Too many times we forget what we have and concentrate on what we don’t have. What is one person’s worthless object is another’s prize possession. It is all based on one’s perspective. It makes you wonder what would happen if we all gave thanks for the bounty we have, instead of worrying about wanting more. Take joy in all you have, especially your friends.

I am heading to visit my brother, his wife and meet my first newborn nephew today so obviously I am so excited! I thought this quote fit perfectly… Even though we live in different cities, any time we get together it is HOME 🙂

Rather than inconvenience your friends (and their couches) during your traveling escapades, consider http://www.couchsurfing.org/, a community of travelers that are happy to open up their homes to other world travelers. I recommend becoming a verified member (a $25 donation) and only staying with other verified members for security purposes. Users can post reviews of their experiences on staying with other members. This alternative is a wonderful way to keep traveling expenses extremely low and to make new friends around the globe!

The area is only a 10 minute drive from Jaco which provides a very active nightlife and well as shopping and tour opportunities during the day. English is very prominent in this area so you won’t be stuck if you can’t speak the native language (spanish).